Josh Bartelstein: Fab Five visit to Michigan's Final Four run wasn't media circus

2:09 PM, August 22, 2013

April 8, 2013: Former members of the Fab 5 from the Michigan Wolverines (left to right) Juan Howard - Jimmy King - Ray Jackson and Jalen Rose during the first half against the Louisville Cardinals. / USA TODAY Sports

Posted by Brian Manzullo

Detroit Free Press Sports Writer

If you recall, arguably the largest side story to Michigan’s NCAA tournament run was the Fab Five reunited at the national championship game last April in Atlanta.

At the time, there were mixed reactions. While the starting five from the national runner-up 1992 and 1993 Michigan teams insisted they were there to support the Wolverines, many thought they were trying to create a “media circus” (that includes our very own Mick McCabe).

Josh Bartelstein, a senior captain with last year’s U-M squad, was one of those who negatively reacted to four of them showing up in the locker room with the media after the loss to Louisville (Chris Webber, who watched the game from a suite, was the lone no-show). But when Juwan Howard spoke to Bartelstein, that sentiment changed.

“At first, it was a little like, what are these guys doing here, they haven’t been a part of this team or a part of this program for a really long time,” Bartelstein told UMHoops.com. “But then, once all the media cleared out they spoke. And I thought Juwan (Howard) really had a great message: they were here for us. They were here to link Michigan past and the present and the future together. And he said one of the greatest accomplishments this team will have is bringing Michigan basketball back.

“They weren’t there to talk to the media, they weren’t there for themselves. They were there to support us and Michigan basketball. They came around and gave everyone a hug, and they said that if any of us ever need anything from them they’ll be here, whether it’s advice about basketball or life, they’re here for us. I think after initially feeling like they were here for the media circus of it, they were here because they loved what we stood for and loved how we played. I think that meant a lot to us. Juwan did a great job with it.”

ESPN’s Eamonn Brennan wrote about Bartelstein’s quotes, expressing the same opinion on the Fab Five’s appearance: “For whatever other baggage was bound to come along for the "Fab Five Takes Atlanta" routine, they were ultimately there for support, as fans and former players, as people who desperately want Michigan basketball to be elite again. They may even have been grateful: It took a long time for the Wolverines to recover from the Ed Martin scandal, but after a few years of rebuilding, Beilein and a bunch of kids too young to remember the glory days finally got it done.”

Maybe all of this is water under the bridge at this point, considering the Final Four was months ago. But it’s still interesting to read Bartelstein’s perspective on the matter.